Pietà – Michelangelo

Hi Folks!

This is a pietà, and not just any pietà but the one that was sculpted by Michelangelo Buonarroti. The most interesting thing about this work of art is that the sorrowing Virgin Mary is youthful, possibly in her teens. In my humble opinion, Michelangelo’s intention was to depict Mary holding the dead body of her father, and he did a great job. The three figures of trinity is a confusing concept(?).

Michelangelo was so pleased with the sculpture that he carved his name right across Madonna’s breasts. Pietà is the only work that was signed by him. Pietà is nowadays on display in St. Peter’s Basilica behind a bulletproof acrylic glass panel. Some extra protection is required because the sculpture has attracted many vandals. In 1972 Mary’s nose was chopped off by a guy who claimed to be Jesus Christ himself. This incident led to the first successful nose job when Mary’s nose was reconstructed from a block cut out of her buttocks. Michael Jackson tried the same trick, but with less success.

-Gart